Jared Leto and Margot Robbie share some thoughts on the Suicide Squad Joker and Harley Quinn

“If I’m going to have a past,” the Joker famously says in Alan Moore and Brian Bolland’s acclaimed 1988 Batman story The Killing Joke, “I prefer it to be multiple choice!”

With just a few months left to go before the big-screen DC Comics universe continues in David Ayer‘s supervillain ensemble, Suicide Squad, fans have been eagerly speculating on exactly what we’ll see from Jared Leto‘s Suicide Squad Joker. After all, it was recently announced that next month’s Justice League #50 will reveal a new identity for the comic book version of the character. Will the Suicide Squad Joker similarly provide an origin for this iteration of the Clown Prince of Crime? We asked star Jared Leto exactly that!

“I don’t think I’m allowed to talk about that so much,” Leto smiles, “But we walked in a completely new direction. I think we knew that we had to do that. It was important to do that. When the Joker has been done and done so well, it gives you a bit of an indication of where you shouldn’t go. There’s a bit of a map there. That’s the good part about it.”

As a fan of the character himself, Leto is thrilled at the chance to offer a brand-new take on a role that has become something much bigger than the sum of its parts.

“It’s quite an honor,” Leto continues. “Joker has been written about in pop culture for 75 years. I’m just the latest in the long list of people who have redefined and reinvented this character. The actors, the voice actors, the television series, the writers, the artists and the fans. People have taken the Joker and reinvented and redefined for 75 years. It is really special to be asked to do that.”

Starring opposite Leto is Margot Robbie in the first ever big-screen depiction of psychiatrist turned psychopath, Harley Quinn. While the Suicide Squad Joker may be aiming for a brand-new take, Robbie suggests that what we’ll be seeing from her character is classic Harley.

“I did a lot of research on mental illness and codependency,” she says. “I was trying to access a way in to understanding why she’s so in love with the Joker. I kind of decided that she’s codependent on him. Now that I’ve done the research, I realize that that’s more of an addiction than an illness… You see many sides of her. Sometimes she’s really funny. Sometimes she’s really mean. She just enjoys everything she does. Whether she’s doing something good or bad, she’ll have an equal amount of enjoyment out of it. She’s not always the most likable character.”